Electric-light socket.



T. A. C. BOTH.

ELECTRIC LIGHT SOCKET.

APPLICATION FILED D30. 2, 1911.

1,036,551 Patented Aug.27,1912.

A TTORIVEY UNITED. STATE S PATEENT OEFFTCE.

TONJES AUGUST CQARL BOTH, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO IDA S. ROSENHEIM,

. OF NEW YORK, N. Y. I

ELECTRIC-LIGHT. SOCKET.

Specificationof Letters Patent. Patented, Aug, 27, 1912.

Application filed-December 2, 1911. Serial No. 663,544.

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I. TONJES AUGUST CARL 'BOTI-I, a citizen of the United States, and-a resident of New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certaln new and useful Improvements in Electric-Light Sockets, of which the followmg is a specification, taken in connection ered in my companlon application, Serial No. 663,543, executed contemporaneously with this application.

My present invention, relates to electric v light sockets and more particularly to combining a strain reliever with the insulating 1 base.

It also relates to combining with the upper insulating button of an electric light socket, a strain reliever which is preferably made integral with the upper insulating button and preferably without forming cross-holes or resorting to other expedients which would increase the cost of manufacturing the button. v

My invention further relates to certain I elements and details of construction which willbe more fully pointed out in the speci-v fication' and set forth in the claims.-

In the accompanying drawings showing illustrative embodiments of my invention and in which the same reference numerals refer to similar parts in the several figures,.F1gure 1 1s a side elevation of my improved electric light socket, a portion of the base and screw shell being broken away 'for purposes of' illustration, and the cap,

electric light socket, taken substantially on line 'l4 of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a horizontal section substantially onthe line 5-5 of Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a bottom plan view of the upper insulating disk; Fig. 7 is a side elevation of a modified construction.

' In the illustrative embodiments ofthe in vention shown in the drawing, 1 is an electric light socket having an upper insulating disk 2 and a lower insulating disk 3.

One of the features of my invention is to form a strain reliever in conjunction with an electric light socket base providing it with transverse holes. This may be done in various ways. In the preferred construction I manufacture the upper insulating disk 2 at a minimum expense providing it with transverse holes which are molded simultaneously with the upper insulating button 2 and without any additional labor and preferably without the use of cross-holes which would greatly increase the cost of manufacturing these insulating disks which are customarily molded out of porcelain.

My upper disk'2 and combined strain reliever can be made by the ordinary dies or molds it, of course, being understood that the molds are properly shaped to mold the strain reliever when they are brought together, and further that inthe molding preferably no cross holes or similar expedients are employed, the mere meeting of the molds, in the molding operation, serving to form the complete upper insulating disk. In the'preferred form I so shape the molds as to form an interrupted ridge 4 through which apertures 5 and 6 are formedat the same time that the insulating disk is molded. At substantially right angles to the interrupted ridge 4, Ipreferably, though not necessarily, mold gripping shoulders 7 and 8. On the side of the insulating disk I also mold the grooves 9 and 10. I

The electric light'socket base which I have illustrated inthe preferred construction as an upper nsulating disk is provided with two draw holes 50 and 51, Figs. 1, 53nd 6. through which the pins or mandrels of the molds (not shown) pass to make the trans-' verse holes6 and 5, respectively. These draw holes 50 and 51-are larger than the crowns or bridges- 52, 52 forming part of the transverse rib, 4. By preferably shaping the end of the pins or mandrels that operate in the mold so that their ends will be sub stantially U-shaped, it will be readily seenthat they will formthe crowns or bridges 52, 52 and in this manner make the trans-L verse holes or aperturesffi and (ion the up per surface offtheelect-ric light-base,

' whether'it be an upper insulating button ora solid base as in Fig. 7, simply by bringing the two complementary molds together.

The upper insulating disk 2 and lower insulating disk 3 are held together'in any suitable manner such as by means ,of the screws 13, 14.- engaging with the nuts 15, 15, only one nut being shown in the drawing. These nuts are mounted Within the head 16 of the lamp-holding or consuming member 17 which will be hereinafter referred to as the screw shell, meaning by that term any member for holding any consuming device. The screw holes 53, 53 for the screws 13 and 14 are molded in the electric light socket base simultaneously with the draw holes 50,50.

If the insulating buttons 2 and 3 are used in a key socket, which is shown by way of example, the usual key 18 will be employed and recesses 19, 19, Fig. 4', will be formed in the upper and lower insulating disks 2- and 3, respectively, to form an interior chamber 20 for any suitable switch mechanism (not shown) to be operated by the key 18. This switch mechanism forms no part of my present invention.

In wirin the electric light socket 1, I take the feed wire 11, for example, and pass it through the aperture 6 from front to rear as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. The end is then passed by the gripping shoulder 8 if a' shoulder be used, it being understood that my invention is not to be limited to the use of such shoulders, though I preferably use them; thence down the groove 10 to the binding screw 21 on the center contact 22, Fig. 4. The center contact may be held in any suitable manner such as by means of a screw 54, Figs. 2 and 4 engaging with a shoulder of the center contact. The other feed wire 12 is threaded through the transverse aperture 5 from the rear to the front of Fig. 1, thence by the gri ping shoulder 7,

if such shoulder be used,- an down the groove 9 until it reaches the binding screw 23 carried by the binding post 24; which is secured in any suitable manner to the insulating base, such as by means of the screw 25 engaging with a shoulder 55 on the binding post 24.

It will be obvious that any strain, pull or blow on the feed Wires 11 and 12 will be transmitted to the strain reliever which is shown cast integral with the electric'light socket base. This will relieve the bindi1ig' screws 21 and 23 and their cooperating parts from any such strain, which strain in practice often.v disarranges the interior mechanism of the electric light socket or causes the wires to become disconnected from their respective binding screws, putting the electric light or consuming device out of commission until it is again re-wired, or if broken, until it is repaired.

self serves to make the feed wires take a at tuous passage through the strain reliever and hence increase the friction between the feed wire and the strain reliever. In addition to this function, the gripping shoulders preferably force the feed wires out slightly beyond the periphery of the upper insulating disk so that when the cap 26 is forced down into locking engagement with the casing 27, the feed wires will be forced into snug engagement with these gripping shoulders 7 and 8. The interior surface of the cap 26, or its insulation 28, bearing upon the feed wires will therefore cooperate with the gripping shoulders? and 8 to still further act as a strain relief. I provide the cap 26 with an insulatin nipple 29 having a shoulder 30 cooperating with a locking shoulder 31 upon the cap,

and, to keep the nipple 29 in its proper posi- 7 tion, I preferably extend .the insulation 28 under the'shoulder 30as shown at 32. The casing 27 is also provided with the usual insulation 33.

When I do not desire .to'use a key or a switch mechanism, or for any other purpose.

desire to make an integral base, I form the insulating base out of one member 40 (Fig.

7) having a cross rib 41 apertured zit-4:2. and 43 in the same manner as the apertures 5 and 6 are formed in the cross rib .4 of the upper insulating base shown in Fig. 1, bfy means of the drawholes 57, 58. .I also pre 'erably use gripping shoulders, only one 7 being shown in Fig. 7, which act in all respects the same asthe gripping shoulders 7 and 8 in the other form. The same screw shell contact 17 and any suitable binding I screw 59 may be employed in this construction as Well as looking screws 60, 60 to hold the shell, to the electric light socket base.-

Having thus described this inventionin connection with the illustrative embodiments thereof to the details of which I do not desire to be limited, what is claimed as new and what it isdesired to secure by Letters Patent is set forth in the appended claims.

I claim 1. An electric light socket base provided with one or more longitudinal apertures,

and a bridge extending across the mouth of each longitudinal aperture to form a strain reliever.

2. An electric light socket base provided with one or more longitudinal apertures, a bridge extending. across the mouth of each longitudinal aperture and itself pro-, v

vided. with a transverse aperture intersecting the longitudinal aperture of the base to form a strain reliever.

3. An electric light socket base provided periphery of the base, and a bridge extending across the mouth of each longitudinal 10 aperture to form a strain reliever, and'one or more gripping shoulders.

TONJES AUGUST CARL BOTH. Witnesses:

LESTER H. APPEL, BENJAMIN STEARNS.

"With one or more longitudinal apertures and one or more longitudinal grooves in the periphery of the base, and abridge extending across the mouth of each longitudinal aperture to form a strain reliever.

4. An electric light socket base provided with one or more longitudinal apertures and one or more longitudinal grooves in the Copies 01 this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. o." 

